The Ministry of the Interior is making swift progress on the temporary halt to family reunification for asylum seekers, as agreed in the government agreement. Already on Wednesday, Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) will inform the responsible Commissioner Magnus Brunner about the plan during a meeting with his EU counterparts. Karner will also present a letter to the Commission.

As the Interior Minister emphasized to the APA, it has been decided to introduce a quota regulation. The first quota is zero.

High Numbers in Family Reunification

Through family reunification, 7,760 people came to Austria last year. In 2023, it was 9,254. There was a particular peak last spring, with up to 1,300 entries in some months as part of family reunification. For context: across all groups, a total of 16,784 asylum applications were approved in 2024. It was 17,239 the year before.

The Interior Minister emphasized that a large part of the people affected by family reunification are children, which burdens the education system in this country. Austria will therefore invoke Article 72 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and suspend family reunification. Of course, family reunification had already been reduced recently, as all applications from Syrians have been stopped since the change of power in Damascus.

Vienna Mayor Commented

The Vienna SPÖ certainly has the Interior Minister behind them. Mayor Michael Ludwig (SPÖ) expressed moderate satisfaction with the initiative today. "As a city, we have been affected in recent years for special reasons, certainly also because we are the only real metropolis in Austria," he noted on the sidelines of a press conference. In the past, they were surprised that family reunification was carried out so compressed by the federal government. This has led to major challenges, for example in the education sector. "If this is now spread out over time, it is certainly helpful in integration," Ludwig stated. He expressed confidence that the approach could be organized in accordance with European law.

How long the family reunification will remain suspended has not yet been communicated by the government. Should the system become overloaded, it is not even ruled out by the government that no asylum applications will be accepted at all in the future.

How Does Family Reunification Work?

Family reunification in Austria is organized in such a way that recognized asylum seekers can apply for it immediately after being granted protection status. The relative contacts the Austrian representative authority in the country where they are residing and requests a visa. If this is approved, because approval is expected, the person can enter Austria for four months and submit their application for international protection here. Spouses or registered partners of recognized asylum seekers or those entitled to subsidiary protection, as well as their minor children, can benefit. The same applies to parents of a child who has come to Austria.

(APA/Red)

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